


Curfew

by Dmonius



Category: DCU
Genre: AU, Catlad - Freeform, Flirting, M/M, NON/CON, Red Hood - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-06
Updated: 2013-08-22
Packaged: 2017-11-23 21:57:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/626942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dmonius/pseuds/Dmonius
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While he's on patrol, the Red Hood as an encounter with a certain kitten that shouldn't be allowed out that late at night. Red Hood/Catlad</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Curfew

 

The truth about love comes at 3am.

(Pink)  
  


 

Jason was resting on the roof of a grocery story not far from Huntress' high school and threw his cigarette on the ground. She usually kept the district for herself and did not allow anybody to patrol (or smoke) here, but since Jason just listened to the Batfamily's conversations he hacked into, he couldn't care less about Huntress. For a moment, he made sure that his hair was sitting perfectly with the camera of his new cellphone, before he pulled out a jumpline.

“Sal, look what we have here. A little pumpkin out so late?”

“Fuck of, sucker.”

“You kiss your mama with that mouth, kid?”

“Leave me alone. Mind your own business. Get the hell off me. Pick one?”

There were three voices down in the alley. One obviously belonged to a teenager who had just finished his change of voice, whereas the other voices belonged to two crooks Jason was sure to have thrashed a short while ago.

“I don't like that tone of voice. Come here, so we can teach you some manners, kid.”

Jason sighed, shook his head and looked at his watch. The crooks had a point – three o'clock in the morning was absolutely no time for a teenager to be outside in a town like Gotham, but when Jason head a sarcastic grunt from the kid, he expected some trouble, so he pulled out his gun.

“I said – Ah.” A cry, obviously. And two punches before one man went down.

“What the hell – ah!” Another two punches and when Jason finally looked down he saw the teenager jump in the air and kick the second crook into oblivion.

When Jason got down on the ground, he applauded and the kid jerked before he turned around. Jason noticed a slender body, black hair, blue eyes, a black sweater and jeans and a rather sullen expression on his face.

“Don't you kids have a curfew or somethin'?” Jason asked.

“Get lost, David Copperfield.” The kid turned around and Jason had to look twice when he saw how the teenager made a jump towards the fire escape and got on it with a somersault. Dick would have been impressed.

Jason was already waiting when the kid got off the fire escape and on the roof. The sullen expression was replaced by a rather angry one and the kid put both hands on his hips. Somewhere, Jason was sure he had seen this gesture before.

“I asked you a question. Answer it.

“And I said get lost. Do it.”

“You're one crazy brat, kid.”

“What? Just because I don't run away because you're the scary Red Hood? Man, you're not even wearing a mask and I'm not impressed by a gun. Do you know what they say about a man and their relationship to a weapon? They compensating for –“

“This is me not laughing. I killed people for fewer things, so let me give you a good –“

“You only kill the bad guys. I know. Selina tol-”

“Selina? I know who you are, kid.” Jason just had to laugh when he looked at the teenager. “You're Catwoman's protege, aren't you?”

“That's none of your business. So could you please allow me to mind mine?”

Jason made a step forward. “When I said you had a curfew, I meant that you should go home and feed your cat, little Catboy.” Jason shrugged. “I could take you home if you want to. Your place, my place, anywhere you want, kitten.”

“I'm not a kitten”, Catlad said.

“What's your name anyway?”

“I don't have a name.”

“Right. And the next thing you tell me is that you can't give me your cellphone number because you don't own a cellphone?”

“Actually –“

“Oh, shut up, kid.”

“That's a threat you can't barely stand.”

Jason was on his way to the ground a millisecond later, but he got hold of something – he got hold of the boy's sleeve and pulled him down with him to the ground. He pressed the teenager to his body, kissed his forehead. “Wanna bet?”

Next thing was an elbow in his stomach and all of a sudden, Jason was glad for the Kevlar. The Catboy was on his feet again and the Red Hood followed him a moment thereafter.

“If I win, you're getting home with me.”

“If you lose, well – let's talk about that later.”

The kid made a jump forward with his foot in the air, but Jason sidestep and made use of the boys' drive to pull him forward at this red All Star. The kid did not lose balance, but got in the ground with his hands and kicked again, hitting Jason's chest. Jason kicked the boy's first hand off the ground and when he was on his feet again, the short exchange of punches revealed everything Jason needed to know for the rest of the contest. Whereas he mostly relied on his strength and technique, the boy used speed and swiftness to avoid being hit and to hit even more thoroughly.

Jason caught the boy's arm just an inch from his head. “If I lose, you're going out with me and I'm buying.”

“You should be so lucky.”

And there was the elbow in his gut again. Jason pretended to be hurt and caught the kid's fist mid-air. That was all he needed – and sooner than later, the boy was on the ground after Jason had put a wristlock on him very successfully.

“Hm, coming home with me it is, kitten”, Jason whispered in the boy's ear.

“Didn't you remember what I said about guys and their guns? Missing yours?”

Jason's hand moved to the weapon at his right hip, and that was all the distraction Catboy needed. Jason's nose was probably going to bleed a little and he let go of the boy.

“This is me not laughing, Red Hood.”

Catboy kicked, but Jason got hold of the red All Stars again and pulled him forward. He held him close and turned him around. He kissed the boy's forehead and said, “May I have this dance, kitten?”

“It's Tim,”

“What?”

This time it wasn't an elbow. It was a fricking knee in his groin and again, Jason was glad for the Kevlar. Catboy then booted Jason's shin to get free and the man let him go.

“You know. This whole trashy 'I'm the Red Hood, I'm an evil vigilante and I kill people for fewer things' is really a turn off.”

Catboy walked towards the end of the roof, but turned around once more. “You lost, by the way. And nice watch!”

Jason looked at his wrist. The watch was lost, but before he could bounce forward and demand it back, he noticed it in his leather jacket, so he pulled it out there and put it back on. Then, he grabbed for his pack of cigarettes and just saw them lying on the floor, having been trampled by a red All Star obviously.

 

Tim and Steph went out of the school to approach the yellow line of buses waiting to take the pupils home. Tim looked at the paper Miss Bertinelli had given back this lesson (A- because she didn't like this first analysis of Beatrice and Benedickt's merry war, but what the hell), but Steph caught his attention. She just said “Wow, who's that.”

“Who's who?” Tim asked.

“Him!”

Tim looked forward and saw the Red Hood leaning against his motorcycle. The leather jacket was the same, but the black hair with the white streak wasn't that thoroughly gelled and the older man – he had to be twenty-two at maximum – had obviously changed his sweater. Tim couldn't see a gun, so he shrugged and turned to his best friend.

“That's my ride.”

“You gotta be kidding.”

“I'm afraid not. I'll call you later, kay?”

“Have fun.”

Tim crossed the street and walked towards the Red Hood, Jason.

“You know that you're not allowed to park a vehicle here,” he said while approaching. He made sure to keep his distance and folded his arms.

Jason smiled and threw his cigarette on the ground. “So, Tim...what...”

“How did you find me anyway? I didn't even give me you cell number, so it's not like you stand a chance.”

“Well, I'm still friends with Selina on facebook. And as it just happens Oracle owed me a faver. Does that surprise you? How old are you, anyway? You look like twelve.”

“I'm eighteen.”

Jason smirked and shook his head.

“Okay, sixteen.”

“Oh, jail bait. Sorry, kid. Gotta go.”

Jason turned around and put his helmet on.

“You gotta be kidding,” Tim said and pulled him back. “You lost a bet, remember?”

“You weren't playing fair.” Jason opened the helmet's ventail and blinked. “Grab a helmet. I'm going to take you out tonight.”

“Gotta be home at seven.”

Tim climbed on the motorcycle and pulled on the helmet Jason gave him.

“Seven am?” Jason asked while Tim closed his arms around Jason's waist.


	2. Chapter 2

Their respective jumplines made them land on Selina's roofgarden and Jason caught Tim while he was still in the air. He closed his arms around Tim's waist and moved a streak aside. Then, he pulled a domino out of the pocket of his jacket and laid it on Tim's eyes.

“I already got one, you know,” Tim said. “Comes with the cat ears.”

“Hey, what present can I get for my kitten if he runs off every second night to steal it for himself?”

“Your heart?”

“Already got it, little Stray.”

Jason tentatively pushed Tim's chin up a little and kissed the young man. Their tongues just met halfway in Tim's mouth, when somebody, a very certain somebody, made her presence known by a short cough.

Tim pushed Jason back and smiled when he caught sight of Selina; she was wearing a black nightgown and sat on the garden swing right under the Penthouse's roof. A cat was lying on her lap and she held a hot cup of tea in her hand.

“Hey, Selina,” Tim said and Jason did so likewise.

“Hello, Jason. Hello, Timmy. Why don't you come inside?”

They both parted and walked forwards, but when Tim was already on the other side of the door, Selina said, “You don't, Jason. I think it's time for Tim to call it a night. Come and sit here with me, Jason, so we can have a little grown-up talk.”

Tim just shrugged and gave Jason a short on the cheek. “Thanks for the mask, Hodd,” he whispered in Jason's ear and thus, Jason gave him a short kiss on the forehead and slapped his butt affectionately.

Selina waited a moment, then she stood up. The cat jumped on the roof and she turned around, just to stare at the window until Jason could hear Tim sigh and stomp away. He grinned and leaned back before he got rid of the mask and said, “So what are we gonna talk about, Sel?”

“You could have told me.”

“That we were dating? You didn't know? I thought Tim –“

“I'm going to talk to Tim later on. So, why didn't you tell me?”

“I thought Tim would do it. It's true.”

Selina sipped at her tea and meanwhile, the cat pressed its back against her legs; she didn't seem to mind at all and stared at the window again. Jason had just counted to three when he heard Tim's sigh again and how the boy went away.

“Okay. Then please, come closer, so I can make some things clear.”

Jason stood up and she pulled him forward at his leather jacket without him even minding once.

“Let me get this straight, Jason. I don't like you dating Tim at all. First of all, because I don't want him to get into the crossfire of your wars. Secondly, because you have had one or two mental issues I don't want to imagine even. And thirdly, because I'm not sure you're such a good influence on my boy.”

“Says the woman who sends him away every second night to steal for her?”

“He's training, you dumbass. He's training to become a person in his own right. A thief, maybe. But not a thug like you. So –“

“I'm not –“

“You're not interrupting me while I'm talking, that's what you are. I won't forbid you two dating because then you would just do it behind my back. So, you two will be dating, but under my terms.”

“So, what terms do you have for our precious, hm? Should I use a leash?”

Selina pulled him closer; they were face to face now and Jason just realized that she probably was only five years older than him. The hell would freeze over in her glare; Jason knew it. Been there. Done that.

“You have him at home by eleven. No street fights. No drug deals. Nothing criminal at all while he's at least in a five mile radius. No guns. Safe sex only. If he steals, you won't be near him. No connection between you two whatsoever. You're buying by the way. Always.” Then, Jason could smell the strawberry tea on her breath when she pulled him even closer. “If you ever harm a hair on his head or led someone harm a hair on his head, I will personally castrate you. Keep in mind that there is not one boss in this town and a few other towns around who doesn't owe me and who wouldn't mind getting rid of you. Keep in mind that I will call in favors from, well, I don't know, the Birds of Prey, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, Nightwing and perhaps even Wonder Woman to burn you out. And if that doesn't convince you, let me tell you that I'm well aware of most of your operations. And if Tim ever comes home with blood on his shirt, a tear in his eye, a bruise or a C in math, I will inform Bruce about any of your operations that I know of. And he won't mind, you know, to hand your balls to me on a silver platter, dear.”

Selina let him go and pushed him away. The cat climbed on her shoulder and stared at Jason with a glare that didn't have the freezing effect of its owner, but he got the point.

“Do I make myself clear?”

“Kind of. Doesn't mean I care.”

Selina stared at him. “You can't take me on. Never try it. Got that?”

“I did, actually. Can I train with him?”

Selina shrugged and smiled. “If you want to learn something from him, of course.” Then, she walked by him towards the door of her room. She turned around one more time and said, “Good night, Jason. You're coming to dinner tomorrow afternoon.”

 

Jason heard nothing and that was why he knew that Tim was here. Being surrounded by a gang of thugs that actually belonged to the Penguin, Jason did not have any idea whatsoever Tim was doing here. He looked up and saw the boy on the final level of a fire escape who wore nothing but his catsuit and – his domino. Jason's domino.

He winked and made a jump forward. Jason pulled out his gun and shot at the first thug in line. He could hear an “irk” and turned his back to his little kitten while directing his gut at the next thug. They were just realizing who was beating up two of them simultaneously.

Jason heard a whip and that was why he lost hold of the gun in his right hand.

“You gotta be kidding,” he cried back and punched the thug he had been about to shoot.

Tim landed next to him after a somersault and took position. “No guns. No killing,” he said.

“Where's the fun in that?”

One more down and Jason was just about to finish one while Tim disarmed and defeated the last one. Jason pulled Stray closer and shot a jumpline to get them out of the alleyway. They landed on a roof nearby and Jason pulled of his red mask. He was angry. Felt angry. And Tim should feel it.

“What did you do that for, kitten?”

“Just because you look like James Dean under that mask doesn't mean I'd let you hurt and kill people.”

Tim made a step away and looked at the night sky, but Jason caught him at his wrist and pulled him back rather forcefully. Tim tried to shake him off and couldn't do it.

“Do you have any idea what reputation I have around those people?”

“Let me go, Jason.”

“Do you have any idea why I don't need a common thief to destroy my reputation?”

“Jason Todd, you let me go and take that right back or I'm gonna kick your sorry ass.”

“Shut up, kid.” A bit of Jason's saliva landed on Tim's face. They stared at each other, until Jason finally loosened the grip on Tim's arm.

“I'm sorry,” he said without really meaning it.

“Yeah, of course.”

Jason got hold of Tim's wrist again and had him close a second thereafter. “Don't want you to get hurt,” Jason said again. He let go of the wrist and held the chin before he kissed Tim apologetically. Tim kissed him back, but broke the kiss and pushed Jason's arm away, turning to the end of the roof.

“I was just in the neighborhood. I'm sorry.” He shot out a jumpline and said, “I have to get home now. Feed the cats.”

 

There had been flowers. Flowers and a small kitten for their collection. It was black with white feet and there even was a small collar with “SORRY” engraved. And now Tim was lying in a bed in one of Jason's safe houses and wore a black short that actually belonged to his boyfriend and was way to big for him, but Tim didn't mind. The sound of a shower woke him and Tim just continued to lie on the warm spot Jason had left behind.

Tim had his eyes already closed when the door opened and beside a wave of warm air, he could hear Jason's bar feet on the floor approaching him. Maybe there was a small smile to give him away.

“You ain't foolin' nobody, kitten,” Jason said.

Tim turned around and opened his eyes. Jason just wore a towel around his waist and surely appreciated Tim looking at the muscles and the strong chest. Tim looked at the small line of hair growing up his still-wet stomach and only a moment thereafter, he looked Jason in the eye.

“What? Did I hear breakfast?”

“Well, kitten, this is no motel, you know.”

Jason climbed on his side of the bed and laid down. The blanket got wet because of Jason's hair, but Tim didn't mind. Jason's finger caressed his cheek and he said, “You gotta earn your breakfast, honey.”

Jason was already close to give him a kiss when Tim realized what he sould say, “I'm sorry – what did you just say?”

Jason kissed him nevertheless and pulled him closer, but Tim pushed him away. The more the distance between them, the more he could feel free to let go of his anger. “What did you just say?”

“Nothing, kitten. I was just joking, you know.”

“You weren't. You're a liar.

“What?”

“You said you would respect my choice, that I wasn't ready.”

“And you said I'm funny.”

“I'm going.”

“No way.”

Jason was already on top of him and Tim might be slender and quick, but there was no way he could get rid of Jason's body weight. Both of Jason's elbows were on his arms and the man pinned him down, lastly, with his legs on Tim's thighs.

“What are you doing?”

“You're not calling me a liar, you hear me?”

“Just don't lie to me?”

“I'm not calling you a thief.”

“Just don't steal from me.”

Jason snapped him. Tim could feel his hand on his cheek after it had parted, and he wasn't furious anymore; Jason was still. Any thought of struggle had vanished. Any thought of snide remarks and maybe hitting the bastard in his groin had vanished. Tim just looked at him, breathing through his chest. Jason looked him in the eye and Tim could feel and see his face crumble when Jason looked at his hand and backed off. He was still on the bed while Tim searched for his clothes and quickly put them on.

“Tim, I'm sorry.”

“I don't care. Go fuck yourself or some five-dollar-whore if you need it so hard.”

Jason laid a hand on Tim's shoulder and got brushed off very quickly. Tim pulled out his shirt and threw it in Jason's face. His suit had to lie somewhere –

“How many times do I have to say I'm sorry?”

“Well, let's just say starting now won't give you much of a head start. Where's my suit?”

“I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. It's just that...”

“...that you like slapping me for no reason?”

“You made me angry! I'm not the one to blame.”

“Boy, you've got some series issues. Where is my suit?”

“I'm not letting you go until we talked this out.”

Tim turned around and tried to hit Jason, but the other man caught his fist mid-air without showing any signs of difficulty. “I'm only going to say this once. Where. Is. My. Suit. Question mark.”

Jason's face was as cold as ice before he shoved Tim on the floor. He had already lost the towel and was standing bare and naked in front of the boy.

“Stop it, Jason. Please, stop it. Let me go, Jason!”

Jason kicked him one time on the waist. “Shut up.”

“Please, Jason. I'm sorry, but please...don't do this to me.” Tim closed his eyes to stop the tears from fleeing, but they didn't stop. When he had just been about to protect his body with his arms, Jason came down on the floor and teared his boxer short apart. A kick and a grunt from Jason later and Tim could feel his elbow on his throat.

“Please. Don't let this happen to me.”

“You made me angry, Tim. And I'll make you feel it.”

When it was all over, Jason put Tim back into the bed. He still had his eyes closed and tried not to cry. Too much, at least. He could feel two kinds of pain. One was physical, very sore, mostly focused on his behind, but the other one that was much stronger was psychological pain. Jason, meanwhile, went about making breakfast.


	3. Chapter 3

Tim had been staring at his cell phone for an hour now; Jason's latest message had informed him that he was out of town, but Tim should feel free to visit his safe house if he wanted to. The text message ended with “I love you, xoxo,” and Tim hadn't answered yet. He was about to break into a museum close to Bruce's personal patrol areas and he was monitoring Batman's patrol habits. Patience was a thief's virtue, Selina had taught him a long time ago, and Tim would only break in when he was absolutely sure that Bruce wouldn't respond to any distress signals on time.

Looking up from his cell phone, he heard something. It was the cry of a woman not too far away and one jumpline later, Tim landed on the roof of a bookstore and saw three thugs who were robbing the crying woman.

He sighed and put on Jason's mask. Then, he landed on the ground.

“Get away from here!”, the woman cried, but one of the thugs hit her hard, so she fell on the floor.

“Girls, don't do that. Didn't anybody teach you any manners?”

There was a knife and two guns. He had to get in between, so there would be no crossfire. At least not too much. Jason had taught him that.

“Look who's talking,” the thug with the knife said.

“Let her go.” Tim tried a threatening posture, but he wasn't so sure the guys were buying it. He would only get to their shoulders, but who was he to mind?

“You're in the wrong neighborhood, kid,” one of the gun-carriers said. He walked forwards and pointed a gun at Tim.

Tim stepped out of the dark. “Let her go.” He nodded tentatively towards the woman and she slowly got up

“I know who that is!”, the second gun-carrier said. He turned to his friends. “Hood said not to harm him.”

“I'm not loyal to Hood,” the thug with the knife said. “Neither are you.”

The woman slowly walked away and Tim made a step forward. He waited. Patience was _his_ virtue.

“How can you know it's him?”

“The mask, you idiot. Don't you hear the rumors?”

“I'm not working for Hood, so his rules ain't mine!”

“When you gentlemen are done discussing the matter, I would like to call for a vote,” Tim said.

It wasn't all the distraction the woman needed. But Tim kicked the first gun out of the hand and had his thigh on the guys neck only a moment thereafter. He was already on the ground when his friends realized what had happened. Tim had already jumped back into the air when the first cry came and got rid of the second gun. One thug hit him, but Tim counterreacted and broke the guys knee with a short kick. The knife was now on him and the guy kept it halfway between his body and Tim's. They circled each other and Tim was already planning his move, when a batarang destroyed it and a shadow fell on the street.

“Go,” The Batman simply said.

The guy nodded and ran away. Tim sighed.

“I had it all under control,” he said.

“Sure you did,” Batman said. “This is my neighborhood.”

“So?”

“I don't want to you around here. You or Hood.”

“This has nothing to do with the Hood.”

“You're wearing his domino. This has _everything_ to do with Hood.” He pulled out a remote control and pressed a button. “You meddle with things that do not interest you.”

“I couldn't just let her get robbed. She got away thanks to me.”

“You could have get hurt,” Bruce said, and maybe a little Batman.

“I think I can take on three thugs like they are. Or are you afraid of Catwoman, B?”

“She has nothing to do with it.” He nodded towards the Batmobile. “Get in the car. I take you home.”

“Don't you guys have patrol to do or something?”

Bruce walked towards the car and Tim knew better than not to follow. Bruce pulled down his cowl when they were in the car and started the engine.

“Selina told me all about you and Hood,” he said. His voice had lost the coarse Batman tone of voice.

“Certainly not everything.”

“I have an agreement with her. I keep a blind eye on her operations, as long as she helps me during my operations from time to time.”

“Then think of me as a subordinate of her. An independent subcontractor.”

“I think of you as a child.”

Tim rolled his eye. “Please, B. Dick was younger than me when he started this.”

“Jason was younger than you, too. And look where it got him.”

“He's a hero in his own right,” Tim said more to himself.

“He's a killer. He has killed dozens of criminals. I'm worried about you.”

“I don't have anything to do with the killings. Let's just say we have an agreement, too. I can handle him.”

“I know what your agreement is about, Tim.” Bruce stopped the car, but the lock on the door was still on. “He's no good.”

“Who I decide to spend my time with ...”

“Is also my concern. You belong to my family.”

“Go to hell, Bruce. Now let me go out of the car.”

“I know all about you and Jason,” he said. “Every little detail. Everything he did to you. I know him, better than he knows himself. He needs to be in Arkham and I forbid you to have anything further to do with him.”

“Try me,” Tim said. “Try him, for god's sake.”

“What I say goes,” Bruce said and the Batman voice had returned. “Understood?”

“We'll see.”

The door could be opened now and when Tim was halfway out, Bruce added in his normal voice: “And when I said that I don't want you in my neighborhood, I also meant that I do not want you to look at that museum ever again.”

 

Two days after Jason's return, the messages came hourly. It started with simple “Whazup?” or “Are you angry?”, went on with “Can I come over?”, “What's wrong with you?” “What's wrong with us?” and finally resulted in “Answer me, please.” “Tim, I'm worried.” “Tim, I love you.” “You fucking coward, answer me!” until Jason didn't write any more. He called several times, but Tim didn't hear any of the messages on his voicemail. He erased them. Jason went on to contact him via email, facebook, hell, even twitter.

When Tim got home from school with a new cell phone just bought at the store, he knew something was odd. Isis was mewing all the time and the little Stray Jason had brought him was nowhere to be seen.

Tim got into his room and saw where it had ended up. Jason sat on his bed and Stray was on his lap, being stroked affectionately.

“Hey, kitten,” he said.

“Hey, Jason,” Tim replied.

“Not talking to you.”

“That's my cat.”

“Is he?” Jason asked. Tim stayed close by the door; he could feel his heart beat. It must be so loud that anyone could hear it. Jason stroked the kitten and smiled. “What's wrong with you?”

“It's a she,” Tim reminded him. Jason stopped stroking and looked up.

“Didn't notice that.”

“Thought so.”

“Why aren't you answering my calls?”

“Haven't had the time.”

“And my text messages? My emails? What about facebook? Become a hermit or what?”

“I just got a new cellphone.”

“Damn it, Tim!” Kitten meowed, but Jason held it close with his strong hands. Tim remembered what those hands had done to him not too long ago. What they did with thugs that didn't give the information Jason wanted. “You're not a good liar.”

“I can't see you anymore,” Tim said quietly. He made a step back and looked at the door. He probably wouldn't make it. The phone was closer, but he had to dial.

“I'm right here. Just look at me if you want to see me. I disabled the phone, Tim. Don't try.”

“I doesn't work,” Tim tried then. “I just realized that we come from … different worlds.”

Jason chuckled. “We're from the same world, you and I. That's why we belong together, kid.”

“No. I'm not like you.”

“Yes, you are. What did Bruce tell you about me?”

“Nothing in particular. But you know the drill.”

“What he says, goes. Kitten, are you actually afraid of him?”

“He's not the one I'm afraid of.”

The cat stopped meowing, and Tim tried to comfort himself that he hadn't liked the cat _that_ much.

“Are you saying you don't love me?”

“I didn't say that.”

“It was implied.”

“Thought so,” Tim whispered.

“I can offer you protection from him.”

Tim made a face that Selina had taught him. It was like saying “please” without moving any lips.

“Where would you take me?” he asked.

“I don't know. Got a few new safehouses. One down in –“ Jason stood up from the bed. The cat fell on the floor. “Who's listenin'?”

“What?” Tim made a further step back. “Nobody's listening, you paranoid freak.” If there was, Tim wouldn't be stalling.

“What did you just call me?” Jason smiled out of disbelief; it was mad smile. He was getting closer, but so was the clock.

“I called you a lot of things. Freak's the word Dick and his friends use most of the time. Faggot, I suppose, was Aunt Harley, and what was it Ivy used to say? Yes. Loser.”

The smile disappeared and Jason had now reached the door. Tim made a step back and got ready to defend himself if need be. His heartbeat was probably heard by anyone out there who could come for help.

“I always treated you like a grown-up, Tim. That's how you repay me? That's how you repay my love?”

“I know, I'm deeply indebted. But let's face it, honey. You've gone soft.”

Jason made his move and Tim quickly took evasive action; he used Jason's momentum and pushed him forward. Jason landed in Selina's bedchamber. He hit the ground with his head, but got up immediately.

“Kitten, I'm home.”

Tim heard his own sigh of relief when Selina came through the door. He smiled and looked in her direction. She was confused and when Tim looked at her chamber, Jason was gone.

 


End file.
